Saga of Indian Freedom Struggle
SAMARPAN
“Bharat Ki Aazadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav” in St. Louis!
The Indian community of St. Louis joins hands in celebrating 75 years of India’s Independence.
“Samarpan” is an artistic rendition of the Indian freedom struggle against British colonial rule. This dance-drama has been conceptualized, written, and directed by American performing artist - Guru Prasanna Kasthuri, the Artistic Director of Soorya Performing Arts, in St. Louis. This production is unique because it focuses on the reason, effects, and solution to the Colonial aggression on Indian soil. It depicts events beginning from the 16th century, marking the arrival of the East India Company, weaving its way through the resistances in North-South, East-West, every part of India, culminating with the events that led to freedom in 1947. It reminds us of the not-to-be forgotten sacrifices of the brave men and women who fought valiantly to get India out of the shackles of British rule. This is a glimpse
into history like never before!
A reminder for our generation and an eye-opener for our kids. Historical events showcased in Samarpan will be depicted in five languages (Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Bengali) by more than 120
artists from India, USA and Canada. This is a mega dance-drama series, one of a kind in St. Louis, to honor the freedom fighters and to highlight this struggle with the entire St. Louis community and beyond. This event is a beautiful example of how the Indian community is coming together to show their gratitude for this hard-earned, long freedom struggle, and to never forget those who laid their lives for us.
Jo shaheed hue hai unkee zara yaad karo kurbani / जो शहीद हुए है उनकी ज़रा याद करो खुर्बानी
SHOW WAS PRESENTED ON AUGUST 13TH 2022 AT BLANCHE M. TOUHILL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER , 1 Touhill Cir, St. Louis, MO 63121
SHOW DURATION: 4 HOURS AND 15 MINUTES
CURATED BY SOORYA PERFORMING ARTS, A 501-C-3 NOT-FOR-PROFIT ORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO PERFORMING ARTS SUCH AS CLASSICAL DANCE, MUSIC AND THEATER FROM INDIA.
Responses
(Here are Press reports, comments made by patrons who watched the show on August 13th 2022. These comments are sent through Facebook, WhatsApp and Emails. We thank you for hundreds of appreciative messages. Thank you all)
A MASTER PIECE - INDIA POST
Thank you for creating this beautiful dance-drama ! A true feast for our hearts and senses ! - KATH JOSHI
Dear Prasanna and Seema, Hats off to you both for the mega production Of Samarpan . The tales of our freedom beautifully woven around the many forms of dances of India was a treat to our eyes. We could see the countless hours of work you all put in to bring this to fruition. It was a goosebump moment for me , as I sang along to Jana Gana Mana reverberating through the auditoriums of Touhill . Thank you both and to the entire team of Samarpan Vande Maataram - SHANTI KRISHNAN
Thanks for creating such a great production. Congratulations to you and whole team for big success. Superb gift to Indian Community of St. Louis by Soorya Performing Arts on Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. Hats off to Guru Prasanna Kasthuri and whole team for A class production. Salute to to all who were part of the team. Happy Independence Day - ASHWIN PATEL
Congratulations on the great program Sir. Hope to see more of your performances in the upcoming days. - Pramukh Bagur
We really enjoyed the celebration of India Independence. It was a fabulous show. magnificent production. - V Jyoti and Ambuja from Dallas
What Amazing production. - Hema Sharma from Florida
Congratulations on a fabulous job done. Keep up the good work - Uma Eachampeti, grand daughter of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishna (President of India)
Loved reliving our history, some of which I was never aware of. I loved how you included and portrayed various leaders from various parts of the country, who are often overlooked. I loved how every war scene was different and unique, even though it was still a war scene. This couldn't have been easy, and speaks volumes about the creativity behind choreography. I loved watching all the artists perform with vigor, which showed how much they believed in your production which again speaks to your leadership and love towards the arts. - Dr. Teju Naik
Responses
(Here are Press reports, comments made by patrons who watched the show on August 13th 2022. These comments are sent through Facebook, WhatsApp and Emails. We thank you for hundreds of appreciative messages. Thank you all)
A MASTER PIECE - INDIA POST
Thank you for creating this beautiful dance-drama ! A true feast for our hearts and senses ! - KATH JOSHI
Dear Prasanna and Seema, Hats off to you both for the mega production Of Samarpan . The tales of our freedom beautifully woven around the many forms of dances of India was a treat to our eyes. We could see the countless hours of work you all put in to bring this to fruition. It was a goosebump moment for me , as I sang along to Jana Gana Mana reverberating through the auditoriums of Touhill . Thank you both and to the entire team of Samarpan Vande Maataram - SHANTI KRISHNAN
Thanks for creating such a great production. Congratulations to you and whole team for big success. Superb gift to Indian Community of St. Louis by Soorya Performing Arts on Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav. Hats off to Guru Prasanna Kasthuri and whole team for A class production. Salute to to all who were part of the team. Happy Independence Day - ASHWIN PATEL
Congratulations on the great program Sir. Hope to see more of your performances in the upcoming days. - Pramukh Bagur
We really enjoyed the celebration of India Independence. It was a fabulous show. magnificent production. - V Jyoti and Ambuja from Dallas
What Amazing production. - Hema Sharma from Florida
Congratulations on a fabulous job done. Keep up the good work - Uma Eachampeti, grand daughter of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishna (President of India)
Loved reliving our history, some of which I was never aware of. I loved how you included and portrayed various leaders from various parts of the country, who are often overlooked. I loved how every war scene was different and unique, even though it was still a war scene. This couldn't have been easy, and speaks volumes about the creativity behind choreography. I loved watching all the artists perform with vigor, which showed how much they believed in your production which again speaks to your leadership and love towards the arts. - Dr. Teju Naik
Supported by Missouri Arts Council
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